Hiking the Deep Forests of Costa Rica… Sort of.
“Ooh baby it’s wild world.” Cat Stevens.
To say the least, Costa Rica is replete with wild places, and I am never shy for desire of adventure, this weekend being no exception. Actually, the tale isn’t really that treacherous, and I do it all for the readers, not me.
Okay, fine I do it for me, but I am inspired to inspire readers.
Today we take a departure from the normally prescriptive fitness article into the narrative story of danger and cliff-hangers… To be honest, if I seem a little bitter, it’s because the hike I went on was hardly the Bear Gryllz adventure I was looking for: lost in the rainforest with only my wits to get me out, eating beetles for nourishment, and seeking a river to follow.
We pick up our story in the province of Guanacaste…
Just 20-30 minutes South from Liberia on the Pan-American Highway, aka “The 1,” easily accessed by the beaches of Guanacaste and the area surrounding Arenal, there is a waterfall known as the Llanos Del Cortes Catarata, “catarata’ being the word for waterfall in Spanish.
My wife, Cristina, is at the wheel of our ’87 Pathfinder today, so I can navigate, and we have our friend Corey with his son in tow make the party an even four. From our home in Tamarindo it’s about 90 minutes door-to-door but with nobody on the road we make it in about 80 minutes.
This is one of those adventures where having a vehicle is nice but not necessary if one can either rent a car or take the bus. In fact as we pulled off the 1 there was a bus dropping someone off by the aptly marked entrance to the main road in. The walk in from that point is about 2-3 kilometers of trudging on foot.
The road in is marked with signs for a hotel about 100 meters in, and about 50 meters on the right is a fenced off area with a gate: the path to Llanos. At this point we start to park thinking we have arrived at our destination. Just inside the unceremoniously gated entrance a man with a pad of paper and a smile is perched under a corrugated metal roof. I assume he is going to charge us to park inside the gate; a fee I am way too cheap to pay.
Corey approaches the man to ask if this road leads to the falls. As it turns out, Hermes of the Catarata is only here to collect donations for a local school being built, not collecting a parking fee as I had suspected. We all pile back into the truck, give the man 1,000 Colones (US$2), and make our way down the dusky pitted trail.
As luck would have it, the sky is well lit with a few clouds to give us breaks on our presumed hike, and the climate is perfect; not too hot, not wet, and easy-breezy.
Pulling down the path, branches tickle the top of the truck, teasing us further into the fray; around one corner, down a decline, dodge this stone, over that puddle, and around the tree to… holy cow!
“Parking Lot!” I let everybody know as if they have their eyes closed.
The lot is full of about ten cars, and a man wearing rags, holding a wizard’s staff, and pointing us to spot under some shade. I assume he is the requisite “car-watcher-guy” found in any Costa Rican parking lot.
We park, spill out of the tuck, and thank Gandolf for the shaded parking spot.
We all begin grabbing our hiking accouterments: shoes, hiking sticks, bottled water. As I fish for my things I can’t help but notice the overwhelming sound of rushing water crushing the song of light wind sifting through the trees. You know, like the sound of a waterfall, and stuff.
“Ah, guys… I think we can just wear our flip-flops in…” I suggest.
“Yeah, me too.” Corey says
We all drop our requisite necessities, lock the truck, and cross the sandy lot for the trailhead. There are two trail heads, one off to the right of the lot when you are facing the sound of rushing water, which we would later find out goes to the top of the falls; and another to the left. By chance, probably following the signs, we took the leftmost trail which led to the river bottom. What I have hoped would be a trail of surprise and peril, was barely slippery and steep.
Now to be fair, for those with any mobility issues, it is slick in spots and may be nice to have hiking sticks for getting down the trail.
Me? I was Q-bert, hoping from rock, to rock.
In three minutes we found ourselves at the small beach lining the body of water at the base of the falls. The falls themselves are impressive, and remind me of the Minnehaha falls in Minneapolis Minnesota, save the freezing cold waters of the Midwest. Here, we could walk right in and swim up to the falls.
What the hike lacked in exercise I decide to make up for in swimming about. The bottom is a mixture of sand and non-specific gooey branch and leaf-matter; the kind of thing a man raised on Friday the 13th movies doesn’t want to touch with his feet. Solution? Feet up and swim.
Unlike the falls in Minnehaha I am able to paddle right up to the dangerous plunging water and craggy rocks at the foot of the falls. This would be an insurance nightmare for a park in the States.
The water is temperate, fresh, and of questionable cleanliness, but not smelly or gross. The scene on this beautiful Sunday morning is predominantly families and about 2-dozen people in total. One group has set up a fruit stand and another is selling ceviche and copas for 1,000 colones each.
My group makes our way about the water, taking turns watching our possessions, a thing to consider when dragging unnecessary things down the trail. I always feel my Iphone is safer in my proximity than locked in the car, all risks being equal.
That being said, for the photographer, I would recommend bringing the waterproof set-up. There are some amazing shots from underneath and behind the falls that I could not get with what I have.
We make short time of this trip, and before I know it we are on the road back to Tamarindo after we stop for some food. I am glad to have gone, but seen all there is to see, and ready to move on.
Under the theme of “eat less, move more,” I highly recommend any activity that gets us moving in any way, even if it ultimately turns out to be too easy or too difficult. One of the greatest things about living in paradise is the promise of what is behind the next Guanacaste; and it’s nice to have a goal that isn’t just getting done with a routine, such as hiking to a cave or waterfall, something remote.
Fitness can be a bore, but when I can trick myself into making it an event, then my Sunday cheat meal of Burger King in Liberia is much tastier. Yes, that happened; with no shame.
Pura Vida and Pura Fitness.
Written by VIP Member Damon Mitchell who spent over 10 years in the fitness industry before he moved to Costa Rica in search of a better work/life balance. Currently he lives in Playa Tamarindo in Guanacaste, where he and his wife Cristina are owner-operators of Pizza&Co pizza express, located in Plaza Conchal 2.
Daily, Damon runs on the beach or works out at Tamarindo Fitness Center, keeping fit by doing a combination of old-school weight lifting, calisthenics, TRX, stability ball work and just about anything he can do to create new and fun exercises. Most recently he is learning to surf.
You can email Damon here if there is anything specific about staying fit and healthy in Costa Rica you would like him to cover in his next article.
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Hiking the Deep Forests of Costa Rica… Sort of.
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Andrew Makarik
to@welovecostarica.comAndrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.
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